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UNITED STATES OF AMfjjMEA. 



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Post Office Department of America. 



1639 . 


O' 4 ^ 


(From the original in Mass. Archives. Vol. 1, p. 268.) 


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The 5 th day of the 9 th mo, 1639. 

The General Court met at Boston. 

For preventing the miscarriage of 
letters & It is ordered that notice 
be given that Richard Fairbanks, his 
house in Boston is the plnce appointed 
for all letters which are brought from 
beyond the seas, or are to be sent 
thither ; are to be brought unto, & he is 
to take care that they be delivered, or 
sent according to their directions, & he 
is allowed for every such letter a l 11 & 
must answer all miscarriages through 
his own neglect in this line ; provided 
that no man shall be compelled to 
bring his letters thither except he 
please. 


(From the original in Mass. Archives, Vol. 88, No. 312.) 

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Printed faom Plates 


JOHN ANDREW S( SON CO., 


Street, 

BOSTON, MASS. 



COPYRIGHT BY 




the AMERICAN postal 
machines co. 

1890. 


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Post Office Department of America, 

1693 . 

From the original in Mass. Archives. Vol. 88, Nos. 315 to 320. 


AN ACT ENCOURAGING A POST OFFICE. 


Whereas their Most Exellent Maj ts by their Letters patents 
under the Great Seale of Eng d bearing date the 17 th day of 
February in y e year of Our L d 1691. hath given unto Thomas 
Neale Esq 1 ' his Exec rs Admin rs & Assignes full power & authority 
to Erect Settle & Establish w th in y e Chief ports of their s d Maj ts 
Colonys & plantations in America an office or offices for v® Re¬ 
ceiving & Dispatching of Letters & pacquetts & to Receive 
Send & Deliver y® same under such Rates & Suihes of money 
as y e planters shall agree to give &c—to hold and Enjoy the 
same for y e Terme of twenty one years w th such powers & clauses 
as are necessary on that behalfe as by the s d Letters patents 
Relation being thereunto had may more fully & at large appear 
& whereas Andrew Hamilton Esq r is Deputed & Constituted to 
Govern & manage y e s d Gener 11 Post office for & throughout all 
their Maj ts Plantations & Colonys in y® main laud or Continent 
of America & the Islands adjacent thereunto pursuant to y e 
Directions of y e s d Letters Patents & whereas he s d Andrew 
Hamilton hath made application to his Exellency & Councill 
& Representatives Convened in Gener 11 Assembly y t y y would 
Ascertain & Establish Such Rates & Suihes of money upon 
Letters & Pacquetts that shall lie Received & dispatched by the 
s d Office or Officer for ye Effectual Encouragem 4 of the s d 
Gener 11 Post office & for y e Quicker Maintenance of Mutuall 
Correspondence amongst all the neighbouring Colonys and 
Plantations afores d & y‘ Trade & Comerce may be the better 
preserved Be it therefore Enacted by the Gov r & Councill & 
Representatives Convened in generall Assembly & by the 
Authority of the same that there be from henceforth a Gener 11 
Letter Office Erected & Established in some Convenient place 
w th in the Town of Boston from whence all Letters & pacquetts 
whatsoever may be w th speed & Expedition sent into any part 
of the neighbouring Colonys & plantations on the main land & 
Continent of America or unto any of their Maj ts Kingdoms 
& Dominions beyond y® seas at w ch s d office all Returnes & 
Answers maybe like wise Rece d & y 4 one Master of y® s d Gener 11 
Letter office shall from Time to Time be appointed by y® s d 
Andrew Hamilton—w ch s d Master of y® office or his serv 4 or 
agent & no other person or persons whatsoever shall from time 
to time have y® Receiving taking up Ordering Dispatching send 
iug post or w th speed & delivering of Letters & pacquetts what¬ 
soever w ch shall frcm time to time be sent to and from all & 
Every y e Adjacent Colonys & plantations on this main Land & 
Continent of America or any other their Maj ts Kingdoms & 
Dominions beyond y® seas where he y® s d post Master Gener 11 
shall settle or Cause to be setled posts or Running Messengers 
for y 4 purpose except such Letters of Merch ts & masters w ch shall 
be sent by any Mastei’s of any ships boat or other vessells of 
Merchandise or by any other person Employed by them for y® 
Carriage of such Letters afores d according to y® Respective 
directions & also except Letters to be sent by any private friend 
or friends in their way of Journey or travayle or by any Messenger 
or Messengers sent on purpose for or Concerning the private 
affayrs of any person & pei’sons, & be it further Enacted by the 
Authority afores d that it shall & may be Lawfull to & for y® 
post master Gener 11 afores d & his Deputy & Deputys by him 
thereunto Sufficiently authorized to Demand have Receive and 
take for y® portage & Conveyance of all such Letters w eh he 
shall so Convey Carry or send post as afores d according to the 
sevei’ 11 Rates & Suihes of Curr 4 money of this province hereafter 
mentioned nor to exceed the same that is to sav for y® port of 
every single Letter from Europe the west Indies or other parts 
bej'ond ye seas two pence & all Letters are to be accounted 
single tlio’ they Contain Bills of Loading Gazetts Invoyces &c— 
and for each Pacquett of Letters from the places afores d four 
pence, and a pacquett shall be accounted 3 Letters at y® Least 
and for the port of every Single Letter from Road Island to 
Boston or from Boston to Road Island Six pence & so in pro¬ 
portion to v® Greatness & Quantity of Lettei’s & for the port of 
each single Letter from the post Road in Connecticot Colony to 
Boston nine pence & so in proportion as afores d & for y® port 


of each single Letter from the City of New York twelve pence 
& so in propoi’tion as afoi’es d & for the port of each single Letter 
from y® provinces of East or west Jersey or Pensilvania fifteen 
pence & so in proportion as afores d & for y® port of each single 
Letter from Mary land or Virginia two shillings each single 
Letter & so in proportion as afores d & for y® port of each single 
Letter from Salem 2 d from Ipswich Newbury or other places 
Eastw d of Salem w th in this province 4 d & from Piscataqua Six 
pence and so in proportion as afores d &if any Letters or pacquetts 
shall lye & Remain in the office uncalled for by y® space of forty 
Eight hours the post master then sending them forth to the 
Respective houses of y® persons to whom they are directed shall 
have & Receive one penny more for each Letter or Pacqett. & 
be it further Enacted by y® Authority afores d that no person or 
persons whatsoever or body Politick or Corporate other y n y® 
Post ma r Generali afores d shall presume to Carry Recarry or 
deliver Letters for hire other y n as before excepted or to sett up 
or Employ any foot post horse post or Pacquett Boat whatsoever 
for y® Carrying Conveying & Recarryiug of any Letters or 
Pacquetts by sea or Land w th in this province or shall provide & 
maintain horses & furniture for the Equipping of any persons 
Riding post w th a guide and horn as is usuall in their Maj ts 
Realm of Eng d upon the pain of forfeiting the sume of forty 
pounds curd money of this province for every severall offence 
ag 4 y® Tenor of this present Act to be sued & Recovered in 
any Court of Record w 4ll in this province by Bill Plaint or Infor¬ 
mation wherein no Essoyue protection or wager of Law shall be 
Allowed one half of the s d forfeiture to y clr Maj t!cs towards v® 
Support of y® Governm 4 & y® Contingent Charges thereof y® other 
half to the post ma r Gener 11 who shall sue & prosecute for the 
same, & be it further Enacted by y® Authority afores d that all 
Letters & pacquetts y 4 by any Ma r of any Ship or Vessell or 
any of his Company or any Passenger therein shall or may be 
brought to this port of Boston other y n such Letters as are before 
Excepted shall by such Ma r Passenger or other person be 
fortliw 411 delivei’ed unto the post ma r of Boston for y® time 
being or unto his serv ts or agents by him or them to be delivered 
according to y® severall & Respective directions of y® same the 
s d Post ma r or his Serv ts paying to y® Ma r of any such ship or 
vessell so delivering in his Letters a half penny for every Letter 
or Packett, and it is further Enacted by y® Authority afores d 
that the Post ma r Gener 11 his officers or serv 48 shall Continue 
Constant Posts for y® Carriage of Letters to y e severall Places 
& Stages abovementioned & shall seasonably & faithfully deliver 
forth y® Letters according to y® Intent of this act upon pain of 
forfeiture for Every Omission five pounds, To be Recovered as 
afores d & to be disposed y® one half to v eir Maj ties as afores d y® 
other half to y® party aggrieved who shall sue for y® same, & it 
is further Enacted y 4 y® s d post ma r his agents or serv 48 upon y® 
Comiug in of every post doe Mark Every Letter w th a print to 
shew y® day of y® rnoneth & year when Every Letter came in— 
and it is further Enacted by y® Authority afores d that if any 
ferryman w th in this their Maj 48 province shall at any time neglect 
Refuse or delay y® Conveying over his or their ferry any post 
man or his horse he shall forfet y® suhie of five pounds to be 
Recovered & disposed as the penalty before by this Act layd 
upon such as shall sett up any post or Pacquett Boat, Provided 
that this Act nor anything therein Contained shall continue in 
force any Longer than 3 years fi’om & after the Publication 
thereof any thing herein to y® Contrary not w4h standing—and it 
is further Enacted by the Authority aforesaid That all Letters 
of Publick concernment for their Maj ties Service from time to 
time and at all times shall be received dispatched away and 
delivered with all possible speed accox’diug to the respective 
directions thereon free of all charge and without demanding or 
receiving any money or pay for the same anything hereinbefore 
contained notwithstanding. 

Past. June 9 th 1693. 

See also printed Acts and Resolves of Mass. Vol. 1, p. 115. Boston, 1869. 

Collections of Mass. Historical Society, 3d Series, Vol. VII., pp. 48-89. Boston, 1838. 


* 





Post Office Department of America. 

1712 to 1890. 


The Letters Patent to Thomas Neale, Esq., terminating 
in 1712, the Ministry of Great Britain took possession of the 
Post Oflice Department of North America, under an Act of 
Parliament passed in 1710, and continued Col. Andrew 
Hamilton in ottice as Postmaster-General. 

Mass. Archives. Vol. SS. Nos. 321-381. 

In 1743, Head Lynch, Esq., held the oflice, and in 1753, 
Dr. Benjamin Franklin was appointed, who, for the first time 
in its history, made the Department “of great convenience to 
the Colonies and a source of revenue to the Mother Country.” 

The Ministry removed Dr. Franklin in 1773-4, and used 
the Department to heavily tax the Colonies. 

American Archives, 4th Series. Vol. 1, pp. 500-504, etc. 

A “New American Post Oflice” having been organized, 
Dr. Franklin was appointed Postmaster-General by the Con¬ 
tinental Congress, -Inly 2G, 1775. He was succeeded by his 
son-in-law, Richard Baclie, November 7,1776, and by Ebenezer 
Hazard, January 28, 1782. 

Under the Federal Government the headquarters of the 
Department were removed from New York to Philadelphia in 
1790-1, and were finally established at Washington in 1799, 
with the following Postmasters-General: — 


Appointed. No. ok Post Offices. 


Samuel Osgood, 

September 2(5, 1789, 


. 75 

Timothy Pickering, 

August 12, 1791, 



Joseph Habersham, . 

February 25, 1795, . 


453 

Gideon Granger, 

Return J. Meigs, Jr., 

November 28, 1801, 


903 

March 17, 1814, 


3,000 

John McLean, .... 

June 2G, 1823, 


4,043 

William T. Barry, . 

March 9, 1829, 


8,004 

Amos Kendall, 

May 1, 1835, . 


. 10,770 

John M Niles, 

May 25, 1840, 


. 13,468 

Francis Granger, 

March 6, 1841, 



Charles A Wiekliffe, 

September 13, 1841, 


. 13,778 

Cave Johnson, .... 

March 6, 1845, 


. 14,183 

Jacob Collamer, 

March 8, 1849, 


. 16,749 

Nathan K. Hall, 

July 23, 1850, 


18,417 

Samuel D. Hubbard, 

August 31, 1852, 


. 20,901 

James Campbell, 

March 5, 1853, 


. 22,320 

Aaron V. Brown, 

March 6, 1857, 


. 26,586 

Joseph Holt, .... 

March 14, 1859, 


. 28,539 

Horatio King, .... 

F ebruary 12, 1861, 



Montgomery Blair, . 

March 5, 1861, 
September 24, 1864, 


. 28,586 

William Dennison, . . . 


. 28,878 

Alexander W Randall, . 

July 25, 1866, 


. 23,828 

John A. J. Creswell, 

March 5, 1869, 


. 27,106 

James W Marshall. 

July 7, 1874, . 



Marshall Jewell, 

August 24, 1874, 


. 34,294 

James N. Tyner, 

July 12, 1876, . 


. 36,383 

David M Key, 

March 12, 1877, 


. 37,345 

Horace Maynard, 

June 2, 1880, . 


. 42,989 

Thomas L. James, . 

March 5, 1881, 



Timothy O. Howe, . 

December 20, 1881, 


. 44,512 

Walter Q. Gresham, 

April 3, 1883, . 


. 47,863 

Frank Hatton, .... 

October 14, 1884, . 


. 50,017 

William F. Vilas, . 

March 6, 1885, 


. 51,252 

Don M. Dickinson, . 

January 16, 1888, . 


. 57,376 

John Wanamaker, . 

March 5, 1889, 


. 58,999 

Rates of Rostage : 

1792. On each single letter, 6 cte. to 2a ets., according to distance 
1799. “ “ 8 ets. to 25 cts., “ “ “ 

1816. “ “ 6 cts. to 25 cts., “ “ “ 

1845. Under 300 miles, 5 cts.; over 300 miles, 10 cts. 

1851. “ 3,000 “ prepaid, 3 cts. ; not prepaid, 5 cts. 

1863. 3 cts. 

1883. 2 cts. 

Postage Stamps first used in England in 1840; in theU. S. in 1847. 



From the Annual Report of the Postmaster-General of 
the United States for the year ending June JO, 
1889 . 

“ The Post Oflice is the visible form of the Federal 
Government to every community and to every citizen. 
Its hand is the only one that touches the local life, the 
social interests and business concern of every neighborhood. 
It brings the Government to every door in the land, 
and makes it the ready and faithful servitor of every 
interest of commerce and society. The people from 
whom alone this all-pervading agency springs into 
action, and by whose encouragement alone it can supply 
their jealous needs, simply want the system adminis¬ 
tered with such efficiency and economy that it shall 
offer them more and more accommodations and tax 
them less and less. The only' method I can suggest 
by which all their desires may be gratified, is not merely 
to talk about the application of business principles to 
the department, it is really to apply them. * * * 

“An idle minute may be felt across a continent. 

# * * 

“ One wasted minute often means a mail ten hours 
late all the way along a run of 1,000 miles.” 


' r jHE demands upon the Post Office Department for 
more rapid transmission of mails are frequent 
and pressing. 

Vast quantities of mail matter are deposited in 
post offices only a few moments before the closing of 
mails; upon each separate letter the stamp must be 
cancelled and the postmark impressed before it can 
leave the office for its destination. This work, done 
by hand, is a slow process, painfully laborious, gener¬ 
ally indistinct, and ought to be a thing of the past, 
inasmuch as the Boston Post Office has demonstrated 
for the past four years that the work can be rapidly', 
distinctly and well done by machinery at a greatly 
reduced cost. 




















During tne busy part of 
the day more than 75,000 
letters are faced, stamp- 
cancelled, postmarked and 
bunched, ready for distribu¬ 
tion to outgoing mails, in 
one hour. 

The regular facing-clerks 
feed the machines as rapidly 
as they can handle letters. 

The machines cancel, mark 
and bunch the letters as 
rapidly as they can be fed. 

As machines cannot take 
the place of facing-clerks, the 
speed of facing-clerks, and 
not the speed of machines, 
governs the process of mail¬ 
ing letters. 

A man who faces and 
bunches 4,000 letters per 
hour with one of the machines 
cannot face and bunch 3,000 
per hour without it; and one 
who can face and bunch 
6,000 per hour with the ma¬ 
chine cannot face and bunch 
5,000 per hour without it. 

For facing and bunching 
letters alone these machines 
are a great saving to the 
Government; but when it is 
understood that they are also 
stamp-cancelling and post¬ 
marking machines as well, 
doing all the work by one 
operation, their great value 
for post office use is at once 
apparent. 


BOSTON PC 


maiding 



WITH M, 


The American 



























































































































































































































































































































































)ST OFFICE. 


DIVISION. 



“The value of the machines 
is in economy of labor, ra¬ 
pidity of work, and being 
practically continuous in 
execution, as they can be 
worked night and day with¬ 
out cessation. The stamper 
is simply a facer up for the 
machines, they doing all the 
rest of the work automati¬ 
cally and as fast as they can 
be fed.” 

Very respectfully 

-—> 

Postmaster. 


“The Boston Post Office 
pays a yearly profit of 
$1,250,000. 

The people who contribute 
to this profit, and are thereby 
entitled to quick service, will 
see that here is the vital point 
in the transmission of mails, 
of greater importance even 
than the increased speed of 
fast mail trains, because fast 
mail trains are not especially 
valuable if the mails are left 
behind through the inability 
of the clerks to prepare such 
vast masses of matter for 
transportation.” 

— Boston Herald. 


IACHINES OF 

,'Stal Machines Co. 
















































































































































































































































































































































































































































































MACHINES OF THE AMERICAN 




No. 1. 1875. 

For Stamp-cancelling and Postmarking Letters. 
Hand Feed. 4,000 per hour. 

Adopted by the Postmaster of Boston in 1876. 


No. 3. 1879. 


For Stamp-cancelling and Postmarking Letters. 
Automatic Feed. 400 per minute; 15,000 per hour. 

Adopted by Act of Congress of the United States in 1882. 


No. 2. 1877. 

For Stamp-cancelling and Postmarking Postal Cards. 
Automatic Feed. 400 per minute; 15,000 per hour. 

Adopted by Act of Congress of the United States in 1880. 


No 4. 1882. 

Same as No. 3. with Improvements. 


"n 


A Continuous and Progressive Line of 





















POSTAL MACHINES COMPANY. 



No. 5. 1884. 

For Facing, Stamp-cancelling, Postmarking, Counting and Bunching Letters and Postal Cards, all by 
one operation. 100 to 200 per minute; 4,000 to 8,000 per hour, according 
to the speed of the operator. 


Adopted by the Post Office Department of the United States in 1889. 



No. 6. 1890. 

Same as No. 5, with Improvements. 

KIP* These machines, unlike automatic-feed machines, are strong and durable in construction; do not 
easily get out of order; can be operated by any one without experience. 

Inventions, Patents and Development. 














IMPROVEMENT IN THE PROCESS OF MAILING LETTERS 


— with; — 


MACHINES OF THE AMERICAN 


POSTAL MACHINES 


CO. 


Facing 

and 

Bunching. 



aBftBaa&S 


1870. 


400 

per 

minute. 

15,000 

per 

hour. 



' 













tf 


Stamp-cancelling 

and 

Postmarking. 


TEN MEN, without machines, cost $5,000. per year. 


1880. 


Facing 

and 

Bunching. 


400 

per 

minute. 

15,000 

per 

hour. 


Stamp-cancelling 

and 

Postmarking. 


^^^N MEN, with one automatic-feed machine, cost $4,000. per year. 




m 

m 



Lira 




Facing, 

Bunching, 

Stamp-cancelling 

and 

Postmarking. 



1890. 


400 

per 

minute. 

15,000 

per 

hour. 


By this process all the time and space neces¬ 
sary for Stamp-cancelling and Post¬ 
marking is saved ; the work being 
completed before hand-stamp¬ 
ers or automatic-feed 
machines can even begin. 


F OUR MEN, with four improved machines, cost $3,000. per year. 




























































Tfis 

merican p ostal J^\ actings (^onrpanv; 

Submits the following conclusions: 

I. The growth of the Post Office Department of the 
United States of America exceeds that of all the 
other nations of the world combined. 

II. Although of the* greatest importance to the public, it 
is, perhaps, the last field in which labor-saving 
machinery has been adopted. 

III. The difficulties attending the application of machinery 

to the varying conditions of letters have been so 
great that this Company, after experimenting for 
fifteen years, at a cost exceeding $200,000, has 
only recently perfected a satisfactory method and 
machines. 

IV. These machines, on a basis of saving to the Govern¬ 

ment, are furnished at extremely low rates, and 
on a basis of their actual cost, with superin¬ 
tendence and repairs, the price is very reasonable. 

Y. The increase in efficiency and reduction in cost secured 
to the postal service by the adoption of these 
machines is without a parallel in the history of 
the Post Office Department. 














'v 







The above cancellation and postmark is 
a photographic copy of an impression made 
in the Philadelphia Post Office, with one 
of the machines of the American Postal 
Machines Company. 








































library of congress 


0 029 795 617 6 





